Ignite the Flames
by Angel Longstring
Summary: Lovino was all set to be heir to the throne of the Roman Empire-one of the greatest empires in the world ... until his father makes his younger twin brother heir instead. With the help of new friends and unexpected allies, can he claim his rightful throne and save Rome? Or will Feliciano take everything from him?


_It was spring in Rome and already the temperatures were blazing. It did not stop people from going to the market however or the Coliseum. The day was a typical day in Rome. The streets buzzed with noise of people going about their daily lives. The ruckus and noise could be overwhelming if one was not used to it. For those that were used to it, the ruckus was like white noise; faded into the background and forgotten. The venders sell their wares, customers haggle prices. Life in Rome was peaceful for the moment. But that is not the story I am here to tell._

 _Our story starts in Rome in 90 AD._

 _However, it is slightly different than the Rome one might read about in the history books. Instead of Domitian rising to power after the death of Emperor Titus, a noble by the name of Romanus Augustus came to power. The Senate seemed to believe that Domitian was not fit to rule and appointed him advisor. The people at least seem to respect him and he is well liked. Romanus' two sons, Lovino and Feliciano have both been groomed to take over for their father as his successors. One will rule the family estate while the other will be the next Emperor of Rome though it has not been decided who will rule what. The future and fate of Rome and the Empire rests on the shoulders of these twins. How they will fair is anyone's guess._

The coliseum was filled to the brim and then some, the crowd roaring loudly in appreciation as they watched their favorite fighters. It was noisy and overwhelming to the first time visitor. The Coliseum was Rome's greatest attraction and people came from miles around just to watch the entertainment that it provided. There were single fights, chariot events, the list went on and on but one pair of gladiators were particularly famous. They were a pair of Spaniards – brothers – whose quick tempers had landed them in debt which they had to repay as entertainment for the masses. The elder was calmer, seemed gentler but that was only a pretense. His younger brother was the one with the sharp tongue and violent streak and most believed he was the real reason the brothers were fighters in the arenas. Be that as it may, the two were extremely popular and they were among the entertainment that day. The announcer stood on his platform, pitching his voice so that everyone could hear him over the noise of the coliseum.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you came prepared to enjoy a spectacular fight today because I have two very special fighters here today." He paused as the crowd erupted into cheers, a grin on his face. "All the way from Spain, I give you Antonious! And Castille!" he made a dramatic hand gesture toward a gate on the south end of the arena as it opened, revealing two men. They were of equal height, both had curly dark brown hair and dark green eyes but one had an easy-going almost jovial smile on his face while the other was grinning maniacally at the crowd. "Today they will take on six men and two lions! Let the fight, begin!" the announcer yelled over the deafening cheers of the crowd. More gates opened revealing the opponents of the two fighters, who seemed to be unaffected by their opposition. The lions made angry chuffing noises as they paced at the ends of their chains, clawing at the men as they rushed the brothers. The two brothers exchanged a glance, a grin passing between them before the younger let out a battle cry that was echoed by the older.

Then the battle began.

The crowd almost drowned out the sound of clashing steel, roaring lions and yelling men. One unfortunate man was caught by a lion's claws, his dying screams almost lost in the noise surrounding him. Another died in short order at Castille's sword while Antonious held off two with his battle axe. The younger brother didn't waste time, engaging his next opponents with an almost inhuman ferocity and anger. The crowd cheered at each death though there was one in the crowd that appeared to be hiding how disgusted he felt at the whole affair.

The young man – Lovino, oldest son of Emperor Romanus – was seated at the left hand of the Emperor, olive green eyes glaring down at the fight. He didn't want to be here, didn't want to be watching this but he put on a front because he had too. The sound of screams and clashing steel had his attention returning to the arena. Antonious had made short work of one opponent, driving him back to get him caught by the other lion. He caught the other in the skull with his axe a moment later while Castille dealt with his opponents. Lovino held back a shudder at the sight of the gore but it didn't truly bother him, he was too used to seeing it. He'd grown up going to the arena and watching the fights after all. His expression did relax into something resembling satisfaction when the brothers won. Then the Emperor was standing, raising his hands for silence. The crowd slowly quieted to listen to their Emperor's words.

"This is indeed a joyous occasion for Rome. Antonious, Castille, I thank you for another spectacular show and I pray you'll give us many more." Emperor Romanus spoke, earning cheers from the crowd and bows from the fighters. "And I hope this victory is one of many for my son, and heir, Feliciano." The crowd erupted in cheers and the brothers saluted the heir, who stood at his father's right hand. For a split second shock colored Lovino's expression before he managed to hide it. He had thought that his father would be using this tournament to announce him as heir, not Feliciano. Lovino plastered on a smile as he fought to hide his anger, applauding for his younger brother even though he wanted to scream and yell at his father. They would be getting a piece of his mind later, he knew better than to challenge his father's word in public. Feliciano waved to the crowd, basking in the attention the crowd was giving him. He even shot Lovino a smug grin which was returned with a smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. The event went on, Lovino settling himself to wait and plan how best to get back at his father and brother for this public humiliation.

Meanwhile in the market, two figures wove through the crowd as if they were searching for something amidst the busy streets of Rome. They were both fair skinned, though the taller one had black hair that gleamed with bluish highlights in the bright sun and cobalt blue eyes. The shorter had platinum blonde hair and eyes the color of polished sapphires. It certainly made them stand out more than was comfortable among the darker skinned and dark haired people of Rome. It didn't seem to bother them though, intent on their search as they were. The men stopped at a market stall, looking to trade for some supplies, unaware they were being watched. As they were finishing their business, a slender blond man approached them, a friendly smile on his face.

"Gentlemen, you two look like you could use a cold drink." He spoke and the platinum blond smirked at the blue-eyed stranger.

"And you know just where to get one, don't you?" he asked, a slightly sarcastic edge to his words.

"Of course I do, I'm the best wine dealer in Rome!" the man spoke and added, "The name's Francis by the way, friends – I do hope I can call you friends?" he tilted his head at the two men and the darker haired one frowned at him.

"For the moment." He answered. "Though a cold drink would be nice while we figure out where to stay while we're here." He commented exchanging a glance with his younger brother. The platinum blond nodded and Francis grinned.

"Perfect! If you'll follow me, gentlemen – oh I'm afraid I didn't catch your names." He led them across the street as they spoke.

"I'm Niklaus." The darker haired brother introduced himself.

"Gilbert." Francis raised an eyebrow at the two.

"You aren't from around here are you?" he asked and the brothers nodded their heads.

"We're from a bit further up North." Niklaus explained as they headed down a side alley. Francis nodded as he opened a side door that lead into what appeared to be a long abandoned bar. "Here we are. I do apologize for the state of things. The bar has been out of business for a couple years now. It makes for a decent meeting place in a pinch though." He grinned as he went over to the bar, slipping behind the counter. He searched around for a moment before pulling out a bottle and some glasses. "A drink, gentleman?" Niklaus and Gilbert nodded.

"Sure." Gilbert spoke as the brothers accepted glasses. Too late did they realize that their kind-seeming host hadn't taken a glass for himself but by then they'd both drained their glasses. The brothers passed out on the dusty counter. Francis waited a moment before checking to see that the mix he'd gotten from the apothecary had worked. To his delight it seemed to have worked wonderfully and he made a motion into the shadows. Two figures emerged and Francis motioned to the brothers.

"Take the pale one to the holding area. He'll be going to the market tomorrow. The other one can go to the arena." Francis smirked. "The gladiators are always in need of ways to keep their skills sharp." The men nodded and went to do as they were ordered. They weren't going to contradict their employer after all.

He paid well.

 **So something is telling me I should just stop watching movies because yet again a movie has given me inspiration for a story. I should also update other stories before moving onto a new one but my muse is also ADD so I've given up on keeping it on one track. Never fear I'll finish my other stories but just bear with this poor, overworked college student. In this one I decided to put Antonio and Castille as brothers because when they exist in the same verse that's how I see their relationship. If you can't tell this story was inspired by the movie 'Gladiator'. As always, enjoy and review por favor!**


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